BMW details electrification and sustainability strategy
BMW will continue to develop petrol and diesel engines and electrify each of its combustionengined models over the next two years as part of its multipowertrain future strategy.
The German manufacturer said it won’t pivot completely to electric vehicles, instead offering mild hybrids, plug-in hybrids (PHEVS), battery EVS and hydrogen fuel cell EVS until at least 2035. It has developed vehicle platforms that can cater for each powertrain type.
Every existing petrol and diesel BMW will be fitted with 48V mild-hybrid technology within the next two years, and these will play a role in BMW’S future alongside alternative propulsion methods.
BMW is “not in favour of” so-called self-charging hybrids, claimed corporate affairs boss Wieland Bruch. He explained that if an electrical element can be fitted, the car should “take full advantage of it” with a plugin powertrain. BMW is targeting at least 50 miles of electriconly range for all future PHEVS.
The company predicts that one-quarter of its sales will be of PHEVS and EVS by next year, rising to a third by 2025 and half by 2030.
BMW’S first hydrogen fuel cell EV will be a 369bhp large SUV in 2021, and Bruch predicted a “larger-scale rollout” of such models by 2025.
Bruch also highlighted the success of PHEV variants of the 5 Series saloon: BMW has sold 50,000 examples of the 530e to date. Estate models have now been added and a more powerful 545e will follow in the coming months. This uses a 3.0-litre straight-six petrol engine and an electric motor for a combined 389bhp, a 0-62mph time of 4.7sec and a claimed electric-only range of 33 miles from a 12kwh battery.
BMW is adding new features to its PHEVS as well, including ‘edrive Zones’. Introduced in London and Birmingham, these allow the cars to automatically switch to fully electric mode when entering city limits.
Another (not yet available in the UK) is ‘edrive Points’, a system in which drivers collect virtual ‘points’ for electrically driven miles that can be traded for “attractive rewards”.
BMW is also focused on whole-life CO2 emissions. Its
Gen5 battery-ev powertrain (set to be introduced in the ix3 next year) uses no rare earth materials, while minerals such as cobalt, which is needed for lithium ion battery production, will be sourced sustainably from Morocco and Australia.
Batteries will be reused after their ‘lifetime requirement’ of 10 years as stationary power sources, and then 90% of their raw materials can be reclaimed after a further decade of use.
As a result, BMW claims that the X1 PHEV emits 30% less life-cycle CO2 from production to disposal compared with the equivalent diesel variant.